UNDER PRESSURE from the natlosal executive of the Amalgamated Union of Engineering Workers, Rolls Royce shop stewards at East Kilbride have finally been forced to call off their black on Hawker-Hunter eng mes going to the Chilean Air Force.
Thus Europe's single most effective action of solidarity with the Chilean working class has faded out with a whimper. The responsibility Tor letting it die lies clearly with those who, in public, have been most atious to declare their support for the Chilean struggle: the left Labour MP's, the left within the AUEW bureaucracy, and the national leadership of the Chile Solidarity Campation itself.
BRIEF LOVE AFFAIR When Rolls Royce workers first blacked the engines, early last year, their action awoke slumbering sentiments of soldarity all round. Hugh Scanion was moved to declare an AUEW black on all arms going to Chile: a move which hindered the junta taking over frigates built for them in Yarrows of Clydebank, and put the fear of god into them over submarines being constructed in Greenock.
In Chile, Rolls Royce workers were recognised as the 'vanguard of the intemational struggle against Chilean fascism'. Their concrete action of blacking was the most practical form of political solidarity with the Chilcan working class and the resistance in Chile. The Rolls Royce workers had touched the military junta's ute line: its ability to count on an easy and uninterrupted flow of arms from the West.
NOT WITH A BANG...
But in spite of the international impact of the Rolls Royce workers" action, British awareness of its importance faded very quickly. After the initial hurry of speeches, little or nothing was done to support the shop stewards in their black.
Worse: in September, the AUEW executive began nor only to reconsider its earlier determination not to allow production of arms for Chile in Britain, but even to bring pressure on Roll-Royce shop stewards to cull off the black/ The reason given was that. as Rolls Royce was a nationally owned company, the workers action was seriously embarrassing the Labour Government, which could acquire a Red Weekly & February 1975 After pressure from engineers' leaders...
reputation internationally for not bonouring its business contracts.
No Labour MP or AUEW leader spoke up then to point out that a Labour Government might have more unportant commitments to honour then those to international capitalism. ike the commitment at least not to a add to the monstrous machine of repression which continues to screw down the Chilean working class.
Nationally the Chile Solidarity Campaign also did nothing to support the Rolls Royce workers, in spite of a general appreciation of the importance of Rolls Royce in Chile. aside from many fine words and the production of a bulletin by the most active members of the far left within the CSC, no action was taken.
The reason? The AUEW executive's decision was part of 'internal trade union politics a pawn of right-winger John Boyd in his campaign for election as national secretary. To have mounted a public cam paign on the fact that the AUEW to all intents and purposes had turned its coat - that would have been 'interference in trade union affairs.
... BUT A WHIMPER So the shop stewards were left to fight off the pressure of the right ww amon bureaucracy, sososately alone. To their credit, they held out more than four months. Then last month John Boyd showed well ahead of all his rivals in the first ballot for the post of national secretary; and the shop stewards - figuring perhaps that not only had they no present abbies, but that possible future allies had also disappeared - gave up the ghost.
The Chile Solidarity Campaign should have compeigned on the change of heart within the AUEW. It should have made sure that information on what was happening reached every AUEW militant committed to heiping his Chilean comrades - so that the national executive's decision could bave been overturned trom within.
Every political party committed to supporting the strugele in Chile abould have been doing the same. The AUEW's decision should have been seized upon as a betrayal of trate union democracy.
The policy of the Communist Party, which dominates the Chile Solidarity Campaign at a national level, was don't rock the boat. CP member George Anthony, as a representative of the AUEW (and the trade union movement') within the CSC national executive, told the executive not to interfere.
CSC DISCIPLINE arity Committee in Glasgow (the Int Locally, ernational Socialists and the international Marxist Group) had a correct position but tailed to pat it into action. In practice, we accepted the discipline of the CSC. within it to get some activity going on the black, but nevertheless did very little independently (aside from the production of a factory bulletin already mentioned) to assure those workers that their action was not doomed to remain an heroie isolated gesture in the AUEW to restore the black there is little hope for the Rolls Royce workers. is a vigorous campaign by every political force with strength within the AUEW, a national cumpaign to ger that black restored.
The trade union leaders must be held to their promises. Only last month they were feting two leaders of the Chilean CUT | Chilean TUCI who were on a trade union lour in Britain. Now they muat be forced to act on the latter's call to the British working class to increase the internutionai isolation of the dictatorship by developing the economic blockade, and the boycott of all arms to the junta.
MANIPULATION olated and subjected to the manipulation of the AUEW leadership: the is olation for the stewards in the factory was all the worse because their action was nor based on meetings of the men in the factory. They ended up in this position because of the lack of support built for them, which the Chile Solidarily Campingn failed to initiate.
This means that concrete work must inmediately be taken up to get blacking action against the two submarines docked at Greenock for repairs (to be used for politicai prisuners by the juntal. Thie kind of concrete action will have a tremendous affect on the Rolls Royce workers.
of the oil industry.
Rail monopolies. deficit.
started.
The far left within the Chile SolidWe campaigned Shetlands.
17,000 milion.
Without a strong movement withfull. retreat, What is now reguired development.
Labour still plans to buy its way into 51 per cent ownership But EILE has nothing to do with taking the industry out of the hands of the After all. the Labour Government of 1964-70 contrulled 5l per cent of British Petroleum, the biggest industrial group in Europe. But from 1967 onwards BP. paid no income tax despile building up 1o a 1972 turnover of C3.431 million!
What the Labour Government tracts abroad and ending the redundancies, the action played in to the hands of the oil moguls.
Without a clear curling edge against the oil monopolies offen sive, by posing the need for international liaison and action BP
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SAM WALLER & CLARE SWEENEY